FOLATE TASK TEAM - Key Persons

Albert Kombo

Job Titles:

Leader
Regional Director, Africa

Alberto Kombo is Nutrition International's Regional Director for Africa. In this role, he leverages his extensive expertise in health program management and advocacy to advance the organization's mission by focusing on integrating nutrition across various sectors and championing policies that empower those living in the most vulnerable settings, particularly women, girls and children. Previously, Albert served as the Regional Director for Africa East and South at Christian Blind Mission, where he led program initiatives across ten countries for over six years. During his tenure, he facilitated significant portfolio growth and expanded the organization's geographic footprint, while also championing sustainable and inclusive development through enhanced government engagement. These efforts contributed to the recent ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities by the Government of South Sudan, showcasing his ability to achieve results in challenging contexts. Albert has also held various roles in the public health sector, beginning his career at Plan International in Kenya, where he was responsible for managing health interventions. He also worked for Amref Health Africa, Engender Health and Planned Parenthood Global, where he was instrumental in expanding program scope across Western Africa.

Alberto Kombo

Job Titles:

Nutrition International 's Regional Director for Africa

Alison Greig

Job Titles:

Senior Director of the Global Technical Services ( GTS ) Unit

Alison Greig joined Nutrition International in 1995 and is currently the Senior Director of the Global Technical Services (GTS) Unit, and Practice Area Lead for Child Survival. While at Nutrition International, one of her key achievements has been building and maintaining the global vitamin A supplementation (VAS) program, one of the world's largest child survival programs. In addition to providing technical direction to the GTS team across portfolios, Alison provides program guidance, support and input to Nutrition International's VAS, zinc and infant, young child feeding (IYCF) programs, at the country, regional and global levels. She also represents Nutrition International's Child Survival work at the global level and is Chair of the Global Alliance for Vitamin A (GAVA) network. In addition to her advisory role across the organization, Alison develops and manages a portfolio of global projects, working together with the GTS Research team to further develop Nutrition International's research agenda, build the evidence base and coordinate operations research in the Child Survival practice area. Alison has 30 years of experience in public health, nutrition, program management, monitoring, evaluation, and results-based reporting, and has specialized expertise in VAS program design, Health Systems Strengthening, implementation, and monitoring, vitamin A supply procurement, country-level forecasting and supply chain management, and in other child survival intervention programs. She has a BScH in Biology and an MSc in Public Health.

Asif Nawaz

Job Titles:

Chartered Accountant
Chief Financial Officer at Nutrition International
Member of Nutrition International 's Executive Management Committee
Vice - President, Corporate Services and Chief Financial Officer

Asif has more than 17 years of financial management, accounting, compliance, project management and auditing expertise in the not-for-profit sector. As Vice-President of Corporate Services & Chief Financial Officer at Nutrition International, Asif Nawaz is responsible for all aspects of the organization's financial and accounting functions. He maintains oversight of corporate resource management, procurement and contracts administration, business information systems and facilities. Asif ensures efficient and effective use of Nutrition International's resources, processes and systems, thereby supporting the organization's operations and programs globally. As a member of Nutrition International's Executive Management Committee, Asif provides input into organization-wide strategic planning and offers his expertise on financial planning, legal matters, risk mitigation and global partnerships and collaborations. He also acts as Treasurer to Nutrition International's Board of Directors. Asif has more than 17 years of financial management, accounting, compliance, project management and auditing expertise in the not-for-profit sector. He brings a wealth of knowledge from his extensive financial management experience in international development at multinational organizations such as Plan International Canada and Oxfam GB. He has managed not-for-profit financial operations of up to $100 million in Africa, Asia and Latin America, working with a broad range of institutional donors including, but not limited to, the World Bank Group, the United States Agency for International Development, the Asia Development Bank, the United Nations, the UK's Department for International Development and Global Affairs Canada. Prior to joining Nutrition International, Asif served as the Director of Finance and Operations at Dignitas International, a medical and research organization. There he managed the organization's financial, human resources, information communication technologies and administrative functions as a member of the Global Management Team at headquarters in Toronto. Asif is a Chartered Accountant certified by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan. He has also passed the final examinations required to become a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA, USA).

Banda Ndiaye

bn..@nutritionintl.org

Job Titles:

Deputy Regional Director Health, Africa

Mr. Banda Ndiaye has nearly 30 years experience in nutrition, public health and international development. His work in public health and nutrition in Senegal ranges from extensive experience in community health and nutrition program design, implementation and monitoring to nutrition program management and implementation; management of health and HIV/AIDS programs; health and nutrition program start-up and scale-up; and health staff training and coaching. Banda is the Deputy Regional Director Health, Africa. In this role, he oversees Nutrition International's programs in West Africa, including the quality assurance of their designs and implementation. He also supervises Nutrition International's program integration within country systems and manages how they complement the work of Nutrition International's partners. Banda first joined Nutrition International as Country Director for the Sahel in the fall of 2006. Banda started his training in public health nursing at the National Nursing School of Dakar, and graduated as a registered nurse. He received his Master's Degree in International Development at Tulane University, in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. He began his career at the regional Hospital of Saint Louis in Senegal and held the positions of Regional Primary Health Care Manager of the region of Thies and Diourbel and Health Planning Officer within the Ministry of Health. Banda later joined World Vision Senegal as the National Health & HIV/AIDS Coordinator. There he managed the definition and implementation of the Health and HIV/AIDS Strategy and oversaw the technical and financial management of a five-year, US$1.3M Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)-funded project in Micronutrients and Health in four regions of Senegal. Banda's key achievements as Country Director of Nutrition International Sahel include the following: Awarded a 2013 Nutrition Champion Award, offered jointly by the DFID-funded research consortium Transform Nutrition, in partnership with the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) and the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement. The award recognizes the ‘unsung heroes' of global nutrition. Designed and assisted in implementing the first national survey to assess the magnitude of Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDD) in Senegal, which provides public health practitioners with nationwide data on IDD and their associated factors in the country. Designed and established a sustainable salt iodization business model working with small salt farmers combining provision of iodization services and self-sustaining procurement of potassium iodate using a cost recovery scheme. Facilitated the establishment of mandatory fortification of edible oils and wheat flour in Senegal and made significant contributions to the establishment of harmonized standards for salt iodization within the West African Monetary Union countries. Positioned Nutrition International as a key Ministry of Health and West African Health organization Child Survival Interventions partner. Established a strong Nutrition International and University of Cheikh Anta Diop (Senegal) partnership.

Chowdhury Jalal

Job Titles:

Adjunct Professor at the College of Pharmacy
Senior Technical Advisor, Evaluation and Strategic Research

Chowdhury Jalal joined Nutrition International in 2010 and currently serves as Senior Technical Advisor, Evaluation and Strategic Research. In his role, he supports planning, coordination, and quality assurance of the organization's evaluation and research projects, contributes to relevant policy and guidelines, and supports evidence generation and dissemination of research findings. His work primarily focuses on implementation research (IR), including program design and process evaluation, to better inform and improve implementation of Nutrition International's programs. In addition to IR and evaluation research, Jalal plays a key role in advancing the science underlying nutrition programming. In collaboration with external organizations and institutions, he contributes to the public knowledge on best practices for nutrition programs and policy. Highlights of his most recent contributions include development of a method to systematically design integration of nutrition-sensitive and nutrition-specific intervention components into multi-sectoral programs. His research supports acceptability and efficacy trials of iron-fortified red lentils and the scale-up, distribution and marketing of the product. Jalal is an adjunct professor at the College of Pharmacy and Nutrition, University of Saskatchewan. He is also an advisor to Hamutuk, a project integrating nutrition into the policies of government agencies and into the work of members of the private sector in East Timor, and Drivers of Food Choice, a competitive grant program to support new research on food choice managed by the University of South Carolina. Before joining Nutrition International, Jalal led the Nutrition Research Unit at BRAC, Bangladesh. He has expertise in community and international nutrition, program design and evaluation, implementation research and in overseeing large-scale surveys and surveillance. Jalal has a PhD in International Nutrition from Cornell University and a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) from the University of Dhaka.

Daniel Lopez de Romaña

Job Titles:

Senior Technical Advisor, Fortification Data, Research and Evidence

Daniel Lopez de Romaña joined Nutrition International in 2017 and is currently the Technical Advisor for Fortification Data, Research and Evidence. In this role, Daniel identifies gaps in existing data, and builds projects and collaborations to fill these gaps. He develops new research to advance fortification activities, and synthesizes and disseminates evidence to improve nutrition and health for adults and children, with a focus on women and adolescent girls. Most recently, Daniel served as Nutrition International's Technical Advisor for Infant and Young Child Nutrition and Health. Previously, he filled the role of Technical Advisor for Latin America, where he provided oversight and technical support for our work in Bolivia and Guatemala. Prior to Nutrition International, he worked as a public nutrition consultant in Lima, Peru for the World Food Program, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the Pan-American Health Organization, among other organizations. Daniel has also worked as a professor at the Institute of Nutrition and Food Technology, University of Chile. Daniel has over 15 years of experience in international nutrition, including program development and management and academia and research. He has a PhD from the University of California, Davis in Human Nutrition, with a focus on international nutrition.

David de Ferranti - Chairman

Job Titles:

Chairman of the Board
Member of the Board of Directors
Board Chair / Board Chair and Founder of Results for Development

David was previously the Director and Head of the 3ie Washington, DC Office and served for ten years as President and CEO of the not-for-profit, Results for Development Institute (R4D). He also headed up the World Bank's vice-presidency for the social sectors (nutrition, health, education, population, and social safety net and protection programs in developing countries), and subsequently, its vice-presidency for Latin America and the Caribbean. Dr. de Ferranti has served in the U.S. government and led research at Rand, the think tank. He has been a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and the United Nations Foundation, and an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University. He is Chair of the Board for the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, spent ten years on the Board of the Rockefeller Foundation, and serves on numerous other boards and international committees. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Princeton University, and a B.A. from Yale University, with Phi Beta Kappa and Magna cum Laude honors. His recent publications include the book How to Improve Governance: A New Framework for Analysis and Action and The Lancet article "Reforming how health care is paid for in China: challenges and opportunities."

Dr. Abdulaziz Adish

Job Titles:

Physician
Deputy Regional Director and Nutrition Adviser, Africa
Nutrition International As Deputy Regional Director, Africa

Dr. Abdulaziz Adish is a physician with 27 years experience in public health, working in the areas of primary health care, child immunization, and micronutrient deficiencies in developing countries. He also has expertise in nutritional epidemiology. Abdulaziz joined Nutrition International as Deputy Regional Director, Africa in July 2008. As Deputy Regional Director, he contributes strategically to the overall planning, management and program decision-making of Nutrition International Africa. He provides technical and operational support to Nutrition International's National Program Managers in Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria and Senegal to help them develop and implement country strategies that meet the nutrition, health and development needs in their respective countries. Abdulaziz coordinates with Program Managers to monitor and assess each country's requirements and identify any opportunities for micronutrient malnutrition programming and Nutrition International support. He also helps them develop country plans and budgets that respond to each country's needs, Nutrition International's key areas of focus and its five-year Strategic Plan. He has a PhD in Nutritional Epidemiology from McGill University in Montreal, Canada. He also has a Masters in Public Health in Primary Health Care from Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia (in collaboration with McGill University). He earned his MD from Addis Ababa University. Prior to joining Nutrition International, Abdulaziz took on the position of Chief of UNICEF's Nutrition Section in Jakarta and was also the Director of the Canadian Center for Nutrition and Food Security in Harar, Ethiopia. His background includes employment as a General Practitioner and Medical Director at the Axum Hospital in Tigray, Ethiopia and at the Jimma Hospital in Jimma, Illubabor, Ethiopia. He was the Minister of Health for the Illubabor Region and a Specialist in Community Medicine. He worked as an Assistant Professor at the Jimma Institute of Health Sciences in the Nutrition Program and was the Head of the Community and Health Services Training Department. Abdulaziz's background also includes working for the Steelworkers Humanity Fund; the International Development Research Centre (IDRC); the Canadian Physicians for Aid and Relief (CPAR); World Vision Canada and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) in Ottawa. He has worked as a Medical Officer for WHO South East Asia Regional Office. After that, he was a Guest Lecturer and Professor at the South East Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) in Jakarta, Indonesia. Abdulaziz has published ten articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals, authored more than ten technical reports and presented more than 100 papers related to the planning and implementation of nutrition programs. Some of Abdulaziz's key roles and achievements include: Former Assistant Professor and current Adjunct Professor at Jimma University, Institute of Health Sciences and Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia. Member of various WHO Technical Steering Committees and participant in Technical Advisory Meetings. Co-authored a chapter in the Oxford Textbook of Tropical Medicine, a world-renowned medical textbook. Published in several peer-reviewed scientific journals, including the Lancet. Reviewed articles for several local and international nutrition journals, including the Food and Nutrition Bulletin.

Dr. Balla Moussa Diedhiou

Job Titles:

Country Director, Senegal and the Sahel

Dr. Balla Moussa Diedhiou has more than 15 years experience in public health and expertise in the health systems and health policies of West African Francophone countries. Balla has worked with Nutrition International since January 2015 as the Country Director for Senegal and the Sahel. In this role, he oversees program development, project and activity management and the dissemination and evaluation of micronutrient interventions. He also manages Nutrition International's collaborations in country and promotes micronutrient programming in support of the governments of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, and their respective strategies to reduce child mortality, promote child development and improve women's health. He holds a PhD in Public Health and has a Masters degree in International Development, both of which are from Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. He also has a Doctorate in Medicine from Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar, Senegal. Between 2009 and 2014, Balla was the Executive Director of the Senegalese Association for Family Welfare, which is a member of the International Planned Parenthood Federation and the largest national NGO working in the field of reproductive health in Senegal. His role involved programmatic, administrative, financial and human resources management, as well as strategic planning, external relations and advocacy work. From 2008 to 2009, Balla was the Principal National Expert (representing Senegal's Ministry of Health) at the Basic Health Program SEN/025 in North Senegal. From 1999 to 2008, he was the Chief of Party, Regional and District Health Officer at the Ministry of Health and worked in the health and nutrition sectors.

Dr. Dylan Walters

Job Titles:

Project Director, Health Economics

Dylan joined Nutrition International in 2018 and is the Project Director for Health Economics. His work focuses on developing and leading the health economics research, evaluation, modelling and policy projects related to maternal and child nutrition for the organization and working with partners to advance the domain of nutrition through economic analyses. He completed his PhD with the Canadian Centre for Health Economics and Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. His dissertation focused on the effectiveness and cost-effecitveness of vitamin A fortification of sunflower oil with small- and medium-sized entreprises in Tanzania. He brings experience from previous work with the Health, Nutrition and Population Global Practice of the World Bank , Alive & Thrive, and SickKids Centre for Global Child Health. Dylan was also a research intern with the Centre for Policy Analysis on Trade and Health in San Francisco, a Policy Analysis Officer with Canadian Coalition for Global Health Research.

Dr. George Mwita

Job Titles:

Country Director, Tanzania

Dr. George Mwita is a dedicated and experienced development and humanitarian professional with a proven track record of leadership in managing and coordinating complex and impactful programs. As the Country Director for the Nutrition International in Tanzania, Dr. Mwita provides overall leadership and direction, overseeing the successful implementation of programs that align with both Nutrition International's priorities and the Government of Tanzania's goals. With 15 years of experience in the field, Dr. Mwita's career has been characterized by his commitment to making a positive difference in the lives of vulnerable populations. Prior to joining Nutrition International, he served as the Country Director for Medical Teams International Tanzania, where he was responsible for the development, management, and coordination of field operations. Dr. Mwita has also contributed significantly to the development sector during his tenure with Oxfam in Democratic Republic of Congo and Tanzania. His leadership in shaping Oxfam's new country strategy aligned with the ambitious ‘Vision 2030' showcased his strategic acumen and ability to navigate complex challenges. Dr. George Mwita holds a PhD in Strategic Management from the University of Nairobi, a Master's degree in applied Statistics and public policy and a Bachelor of Science degree from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology. This combination of expertise equips him with a unique blend of practical skills and strategic leadership.

Dr. Osita Okonknwo

Job Titles:

Country Director, Nigeria

Dr. Osita Okonkwo is Nutrition International's Country Director for Nigeria. In this role he leads stakeholder engagement and partnership management, provides strategic leadership and oversees planning and program development in the Nigeria country office. Dr. Osita is a medical doctor, public health specialist and epidemiologist with more than 16 years of project leadership experience in humanitarian emergencies, public health management and disease prevention spanning across Nigeria, South Sudan and Sierra Leone. He is a medical graduate of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife Nigeria and holds a Master's degree in Public Health from the Manchester Metropolitan University in the United Kingdom. Additionally, he has a postgraduate fellowship in Public Health Policy and Management from Tulane University in New Orleans, USA. Prior to joining Nutrition International, Dr. Osita led served as the Health Advisor for the Nigerian Red Cross Society where he led resources mobilization efforts and initiated mass campaigns against outbreak of childhood malnutrition and associated illnesses in northern Nigeria. He has also led a UNICEF team in COVID-19 preparedness and response interventions in Bauchi, Nigeria. Over the span of his career, Dr. Osita has applied his technical expertise and project management skills at various levels to strengthen health systems across the continent in the areas of AIDS, WASH, malaria, maternal newborn and child health and nutrition. Dr. Osita is a recipient of both the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship and the United Nation's International Peace Federation Ambassador for peace; he is also a Fellow of the Royal Society for Public Health UK.

Dr. Osita Samuel Okonkwo

Job Titles:

Country Director, Nigeria
Nutrition International 's Country Director for Nigeria

Dr. Shabina Raza

Job Titles:

Country Director, Pakistan

Dr. Stanley Zlotkin

Job Titles:

Global Leader

Dr. Stanley Zlotkin, global leader in child health, joins Nutrition International's board of directors Nutrition International is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Stanley Zlotkin to its Board of Directors.